256 Tires and wheels
Incorrect wheel alignment
Incorrect wheel alignment can cause exces
sive tire wear, impairing the safety of the vehi
cle. If tires show excessive wear, have the
wheel alignment checked by an authorized
Audi dealer or qualified workshop.
All Wheel Drive
Vehicles with quattro must always have tires
of the same size, construction and tread type.
For details see Qpage 202 .
.&_ WARNING
Sudden tire failure can lead to loss of con
trol, a crash and serious personal injury!
- Never drive a vehicle when the tread on
any tire is worn down to the wear indica
tors.
- Worn tires are a safety hazard, they do
not grip well on wet roads and increase
your risk of"hydroplaning" and loss of
control.
- Always keep chemicals that can cause
tire damage, such as grease, oil, gasoline
and brake fluid away from tires.
- Tires age even if they are not being used
and can fail suddenly, especially at high
speeds. Tires that are more than 6 years
old can only be used in an emergency
and then with special care and at lower speeds.
- Never mount used tires on your vehicle if
you are not sure of their "previous histo
ry." Old used tires may have been dam
aged even though the damage cannot be
seen that can lead to sudden tire failure
and loss of vehicle control.
New tires and replacing tires and wheels
New tires and wheels have to be broken in .
Fig. 212 Tir e specificat ion codes on the s idewall of a
t ire
No. Description
@ Nominal width of tire in millimeters
® Ratio of height to width (aspect ratio)
© Radial
® Rim diameter code
® Load index and speed rating
(J) U.S . DOT tire identification number
® Audi Original tire
® Sever snow conditions
@ Tire ply composition and materials
used
@ Maximum load rating
@ Treadwear, traction and temperature
grades
@ Maximum permissible inflation pres-
sure
The tires and rims are essential parts of the
vehicle's design . The tires and rims approved
by Audi are specially matched to the charac
teristics of the vehicle and can make a major .,..
274 What do I do now ?
-Passengers must not rema in in the ve
h icle when it is jacked up.
- Make sure that passengers wait in a
safe p lace away from the vehicle and
well away from the road and traffic.
- Make sure jack position is correct, ad
just as necessary and then continue to
raise the jack.
- Changes in temperature or load can af
fect the height of the vehicle.
CD Note
D o not lift t he vehicle by the si ll. Position
the vehicle jack only at the designated lift
ing points on the sill. Otherwise, your vehi
cle will be damaged.
@ Tips
The vehicle jack mode switches off auto mat ica lly at speeds above
10 km/h.
Taking the wheel off/installing the spare
Follow these instructions step-by-step for
changing the wheel.
Fi g. 228 Changing a wheel: using the screwdrive r han
dle (w ith t he blade r emoved) to turn the bo lts
F ig . 2 29 Changing a whee l: a lignmen t pin inside th e
top hole
After yo u have loosened all wheel bo lts and
raised the vehicle off the ground, remove and
replace the wheel as follows:
Removing the wheel
.,. Use the hexagonal soc ket in the scr ewdriv
er handle
to completely remove the top
most whee l bolt and se t it aside on a
clean
surface r=> fig. 228 .
.,. Screw the threaded end of the alignme nt
pin from the tool kit hand-t ight into th e
empty bolt hole
Q fig. 229 .
.,. Then remove the other whee l bolts as de
scribed above.
.,. Take off the whee l leaving the a lignment pin
in the bo lt ho le r=> 0 .
Putting on the spare wheel
.,. Lift the spare whee l and carefully s lide it
over the alignment p in to g uide it in place
Q0 .
.,. Use the hexagona l socket in th e screwdriver
ha ndle to screw in and tig hten all whee l
bolts
slightly.
.,. Remove the al ignment pin and insert and
tighten the remain ing wheel bolt slightly
like the rest .
.,. Turn the jack hand le counter-clockwise to
lower the vehicle until the jack is fully re
leased .
.,. Use the wheel bo lt wrench to tighten all
wheel bo lts fi rm ly
r=> page 271 . Tighten
them
crosswise, from o ne bolt to the (ap
p rox ima tely) opposi te one, to keep the
wheel ce nte red .
CD Note
When remov ing or i nsta lling the whee l,
the rim could hit t he b ra ke ro to r and d am
age the ro tor. Wor k caref ully and have a
seco nd person hel p you.
(D Tips
Never use the hexagon al socke t in the han
d le of t he screwdriver to loosen or tighten
the wheel bo lts .
Ill-
